EventCity Limited was a conference, gala dinner and exhibition venue in Greater Manchester, England, which was demolished in 2022-2023. It opened in 2011 and was the largest event venue in the North of England, with four halls and a combined space of 28,000 m2 (300,000 sq ft). It was closed during 2021 as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. The plans for an alternative venue were also scrapped by the previous owners.

EventCity
EventCity in 2013
Map
AddressPhoenix Way, Barton Dock Road, Manchester, M41 7TB
LocationTrafford Park, Greater Manchester
Coordinates53°27′56″N 2°20′20″W / 53.46551°N 2.33895°W / 53.46551; -2.33895
OwnerThe Peel Group
Built1995 (as factory)
Opened2011
Closed2021
Demolished2022–23
Former names
Museum of Museums (2010–11)
Banquet/ballroom1,440 (Hall 1)
5,740 (Hall 3)
2,720 (Hall 4)
Theatre seating
2,160 (Hall 1)
9,360 (Hall 3)
4,500 (Hall 4)
Enclosed space
 • Total space28,000 m2 (300,000 sq ft)
Website
www.eventcity.co.uk

EventCity was located in TraffordCity, an entertainment and leisure destination. Adjacent to the Trafford Centre, junctions 9 and 10 of the M60 motorway and the Barton Dock Road tram stop are close by.

History

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The building was built in 1995 as a factory for Manchester Tobacco. Peel Group subsequently acquired the building from them and leased it to the retailer Argos who used the building as a warehouse. Once the lease expired, the building became the Museum of Museums from October 2010 to January 2011,[1] when it was converted to its use for conferences and exhibitions.[2]

Events

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EventCity hosted events including the Caravan and Motorhome Show 2012,[3] the Manchester auditions for The X Factor[4] and the Woman's Weekly Creative Stitchcraft and Hobbycrafts Show.[5] Event City also hosted the Roller Derby World Cup in 2018.[6]

EventCity also hosted a series of corporate Christmas parties throughout December every year.[7]

Therme Manchester resort

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It had been proposed that EventCity would relocate to a site further west (formerly occupied by the Trafford Soccer Dome) whilst the existing site would be redeveloped into the Therme Manchester spa and water park resort. However, Peel announced in mid-2020 that the relocation plans had been scrapped, and EventCity would permanently close after all contracted events had taken place in early 2022.[8][9]

Plans to demolish the EventCity site were submitted to Trafford Council in September 2022, with the works initially expected to be completed in Spring 2023, ahead of the main construction of the resort. By January 2023, the EventCity building had been completely demolished.[10] In March 2023, construction of Therme Manchester began.[11]

References

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  1. ^ "Trafford Centre museum attraction to close, but Egyptian exhibition to stay". Manchester Evening News. 18 January 2013. Retrieved 5 December 2015.
  2. ^ EventCity – The former tobacco factory is now a breath of fresh air – Manchester Evening News
  3. ^ "The Caravan & Motorhome Show 2012 'beyond expectations'". Caravan & Motorhome Show. Archived from the original on 30 July 2012. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
  4. ^ "EventCity Limited, Manchester". Venuefinder.com. Retrieved 2 August 2012.
  5. ^ "Women's Weekly Live: The Creative Stichcraft and Hobbycrafts Show". ICHF events. Archived from the original on 27 October 2012. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
  6. ^ "2018 Roller Derby World Cup Announced! | Roller Derby World Cup". 2 February 2017. Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
  7. ^ Manchester Christmas Parties
  8. ^ Place North West https://www.placenorthwest.co.uk/news/therme-reveals-plans-for-trafford-wellbeing-resort/
  9. ^ "Peel scraps EventCity relocation". Place North West. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  10. ^ "Peel L&P prepares TraffordCity site for Therme Manchester". Pro Landscape Magazine. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  11. ^ "Work finally begins on £250m Therme mega water park and tropical spa next to Trafford Centre". Manchester Evening News. 4 March 2023. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
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